The 1986 BYU Cougars football team represented Brigham Young University as a member of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) during the 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by 15th-year head coach LaVell Edwards, the Cougars compiled a record of 8âÂÂ5 overall and 6âÂÂ2 in conference play, placing second in the WAC. BYU was invited to the Freedom Bowl, where the Cougars lost to UCLA.